yea thats a black rat,very common snake in your area. the amount of pattern visable depends on the specific snake, and generaly goes from grey/lots of pattern, to straight black/no pattern as the snake ages. but once again varies for each snake, mine is 10 years old and still has a very visable pattern and even a tiny bit of red, anyway.....

black rat snakes love rodents, but also love eggs,probally wouldnt bother the chickens at all. if this was my barn i'd use a fine mesh for the chickens so the snakes couldn't get in, but still allow them free roam around,if the head can fit through,the rest of the snake can.

black rats are VERY good climbers, so the'll get the mice no problem.

ps. i wish i had a barn full of black rats, i envy you.

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